More than 6,000 migrants and refugees, mostly from Eritrea, were rescued on Monday from the Mediterranean Sea by members of two NGOs and the Italian navy.

The migrants, who were taken to safety from more than 20 boats by members of the Proactiva Open Arms NGO, were transferred to the Italian Coastguard and other NGO vessels operating in the zone.

More than 700 migrants were rescued from one boat, found about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya. Among those rescued were 5-day-old twins who were born prematurely in Libya.